Magic Hat has its act together for summer

Magic Hat Brewing Company of Burlington, Vt., has just come out with its new Summer Scene Variety 12-pack.

These folks are not afraid to go way outside the usual safe packaging of ales, lagers and wheat beers for their summer set, and this year's selection is certainly no exception. You should give this package some serious consideration if you’re looking for something new and different to serve at a Memorial Day party over the weekend.

Summer Scene includes #9, the “not-quite pale ale” that’s Magic Hat’s flagship. With an ABV of 5.1 percent, #9 has long been one of the most popular session beers in the United States, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

The other offerings are: (Watch a video review of these brews below.)

Wacko: a low-alcohol (4.5 percent ABV) and unique beer that’s like nothing else on the market. One of its ingredients is beet sugar, and that gives it a very distinctive color. Most folks seem to like or dislike it immediately – and there must be a lot who like it because this is the second year that Magic Hat has distributed it. This adventuresome approach reminds me of Dogfish Head.

Odd Notion for Summer 2010: This is the latest in a long line of “odd notions,” including a Japanese Rice Lager. This particular Odd Notion is an American Blonde Ale that’s got a touch of ginger. It’s clean and light, pretty much a prototypical beer for a hot summer day.

Blind Faith: My favorite of the Summer Scene beers, and not just because of the reference to a late 60s rock band that produced a couple of mega-hits, “Presence of the Lord,” and “Can’t Find My Way Home.” Blind Faith is a first-rate India Pale Ale that’s gotten an “A” from the Alstrom Brothers at beeradvocate.com. It’s not a big hop bomb in the fashion of Sierra Nevada’s Torpedo or Terrapin’s Hopsecutioner. It is, however, a rock-solid IPA with 60 IBUs. This will stand up to anything that you pull off the grill.